Firearms Trace Data: Montana - 2020

Data Source: Firearms Tracing System

January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020

 

Contents

  1. ATF Firearms Trace Data Disclaimer
  2. Table: Total Number of Firearms Recovered and ​Traced in Montana in Calendar Year 2020
  3. Table: Firearm Types with a Montana Recovery
  4. Table: Top Calibers Reported on Firearm Traces with a Montana Recovery
  5. Table: Top Categories Reported on Firearm Traces with a Montana Recovery
  6. Table: Top 15 Source States for Firearms​ with a Montana Recovery
  7. Table: Time-To-Crime Rates for Firearms​ with a Montana Recovery
  8. Table: Age of Possessors for Firearms​ with a Montana Recovery
  9. Table: Top Recovery Cities for Firearms with a Montana Recovery
  10. Analytical Criteria Used to Compile the Enclosed Statistics

 

ATF Firearms Trace Data Disclaimer

Firearm traces are designed to assist law enforcement authorities in conducting investigations by tracking the sale and possession of specific firearms. Law enforcement agencies may request firearms traces for any reason, and those reasons are not necessarily reported to the federal government. Not all firearms used in crime are traced and not all firearms traced are used in crime.

Firearms selected for tracing are not chosen for purposes of determining which types, makes or models of firearms are used for illicit purposes. The firearms selected do not constitute a random sample and should not be considered representative of the larger universe of all firearms used by criminals, or any subset of that universe. Firearms are normally traced to the first retail seller, and sources reported for firearms traced do not necessarily represent the sources or methods by which firearms in general are acquired for use in crime.

 

Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced in Montana in Calendar Year 2020

1,342

 

Firearm Types with a Montana Recovery

January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020
Pistols 558
Rifles 454
Revolvers 149
Shotguns 136
Receivers/Frames 15
Derringers 10
Other* 20

* Other includes Machineguns, Combinations, Destructive Devices and Unknown Types.

 

Top Calibers Reported on Firearm Traces ​with a Montana Recovery

January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020
.22 Cal 246
9mm 217
.45 Cal 114
12GA 102
.40 Cal 71
7.62mm 41
.357 Cal 40
.380 Cal 39
5.56mm 36
.223 Cal 35

NOTE: There were 345 additional traces that were associated with other calibers.​ There were 56 traces with an unknown caliber.

 

Top Categories Reported on Firearm Traces with a Montana Recovery

January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020
Possession of Weapon 370
Firearm Under Investigation 319
Dangerous Drugs 165
Weapon Offense 158
Found Firearm 76
Aggravated Assault 37
Homicide 34
Sex Crimes 34
Burglary 30
Sovereignty 15

NOTE: There were 104 additional traces that were associated with other categories.

 

Top 15 Source States for Firearms with a Montana Recovery

January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020
Montana 719
Washington 24
Colorado 19
North Dakota 15
Idaho 13
Texas 13
California 12
Florida 12
Arizona 11
Wyoming 10
Oregon 9
Michigan 7
Minnesota 7
Nevada 7
Ohio 6
Pennsylvania 6

NOTE: An additional 26 states accounted for 63 other traces. The source state was identified in 953 total traces.

 

Time-To-Crime Rates for Firearms​ with a Montana Recovery

January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020
Under 3 Months 78
3 Months to Under 7 Months 43
7 Months to Under 1 Year 58
1 Year to Under 2 Years 71
2 Years to Under 3 Years 61
3 Years and Over 571

1/1/2020-12/31/2020 Montana Average Time-to-Crime: 8.95 Years

1/1/2020-12/31/2020 National Average Time-to-Crime: 7.01 Years

 

Age of Possessors for Firearms with a Montana Recovery

January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020
17 and Under 16
18 to 21 48
22 to 24 22
25 to 30 82
31 to 40 280
41 to 50 106
Over 50 299

1/1/2020-12/31/2020 Montana Average Age of Possessor: 42 Years

1/1/2020-12/31/2020 National Average Age of Possessor: 34 Years

 

Top Recovery Cities for Firearms with a Montana Recovery

January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020
Billings 241
Great Falls 193
Missoula 159
Libby 103
Lodge Grass 93
Kalispell 67
Bozeman 62
Miles City 51
Fairview 37
Helena 28

NOTE: There were 71 additional municipalities that accounted for 304 other traces. The recovery city could not be determined for four traces.

 

Analytical Criteria Used to Compile the Enclosed Statistics

Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced

  • Includes traces with a recovery state of Montana. Traces in which the recovery state was not provided were included when the requesting agency state was equal to Montana.​
  • Includes Firearms Recovered and Traced between 1/1/2020 – 12/31/2020 or, if the recovery date was blank, firearms with trace entry dates between 1/1/2020 – 12/31/2020.
  • Duplicate traces, Firearms Not Recovered, Gun Buyback and Firearms Turned In are not included in this figure.​
  • Data was extracted from the Firearms Tracing System (FTS) on April 12, 2021.​
  • All traces may not have been submitted or completed at the time of this study.​

Firearm Types and Calibers with a Montana Recovery

  • Includes same criteria as Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced.

Top Categories Reported on Firearm Traces with a Montana Recovery

  • Includes same criteria as Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced. Beginning in CY 2010, attempted homicide, attempted suicide and negligent vehicular manslaughter are reported in separate categories.

Top Source States for Firearms with a Montana Recovery​

  • Includes same criteria as Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced.
  • Traces must identify a purchaser and the state in which the final dealer is located.

Time-to-Crime Rates for Firearms with a Montana Recovery

  • Includes same criteria as Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced.
  • Traces must identify a purchaser.
  • Time-to-Crime was calculated for those traces in which the purchase date could be subtracted ​from the recovery date.

Age of Possessors for Firearms with a Montana Recovery

  • Includes same criteria as Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced.
  • Includes traces that provide a possessor and the possessor’s date of birth.
  • Possessor’s age is calculated by subtracting the possessor’s date of birth from the recovery date.

Top Recovery Cities for Firearms with a Montana Recovery

  • Includes same criteria as Total Number of Firearms Recovered and Traced.
  • Includes traces with a recovery city or, if the recovery city was not provided, traces requested by agencies with jurisdiction only within that city.

 

View All 2020 Firearms Trace Data

Last Reviewed November 22, 2021